Houston, you have a space shuttle ... carrier aircraft.

NASA's original jumbo jet, which was used to ferry the space shuttles around the country, has landed at Ellington Field in Houston, where it is to stay.

The Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), often referred to using its tail number, NASA 905, was most recently used to fly space shuttle Endeavour to Los Angeles in September. The 747 jetliner was seen by millions of people as it made its way from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to California, where it performed a scenic flyover of the state with Endeavour riding piggyback.

After Endeavour was offloaded, the SCA took off from Los Angeles International Airport, without fanfare, on what was reported to be its final flight: a 20 minute trip to NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base in southern California. There, it was to join its sister SCA, NASA 911, as a parts donor for another of NASA's 747 jetliner-based programs, the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). [Gallery: Ferry Flight in Photos]

Then a flight plan was filed for Ellington Field. NASA 905 was flown to Houston on Oct. 24, just in time for it be on hand for the Wings Over Houston Air Show. The rumor on the flight line was that the public display was a preview of things to come.

The rumors were right.

"SCA pilots Jeff Moultrie and Bill Rieke and long-time SCA flight engineer Henry Taylor from NASA's Johnson Space Center flew the modified Boeing 747 jetliner from Dryden to Ellington Airport in southeast Houston Oct. 24, where the big Boeing jet will be retired and eventually placed on public display," a statement on NASA's website confirmed this month.

How, when and where NASA 905 will be exhibited is still to be announced -- if not also still to be decided. Houston was not awarded one of the retired flown shuttle orbiters that the SCA carried, but Space Center Houston, the official visitor center for Johnson Space Center, exhibits a full size, high-fidelity orbiter mockup.

Regardless of the details, the decision to display the aircraft ensures its history will be preserved.

An early-model 747-123 version, NASA 905 was the 86th 747 built, rolling out in 1970 and making its first flight on Oct. 15 of that year. After serving as a flagship jetliner for American Airlines for several years, the jumbo jet was acquired by Johnson Space Center in 1974 for use by the coming space shuttle program.

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NASA Space shuttle-carrying jet lands for good

New images from a NASA spacecraft orbiting Saturn have revealed a view any retro-gamer would love: a second moon with a heat tattoo of the 1980s video game icon Pac-Man.

The latest images were snapped by NASA's Cassini spacecraft during a photo session of Saturn's icy moon Tethys, revealing an infrared pattern on the moon shaped like Pac-Man.It is the second time Cassini has found a Pac-Man heat pattern on a Saturn moon using its infrared spectrometer. In 2010, the spacecraft found a similar view on Saturn's moon Mimas, which is also known for a giant impact crater that gives it a similar look to the fictional Death Star of "Star Wars" fame.

"Finding a second Pac-Man in the Saturn system tells us the processes creating these Pac-Men are more widespread than previously thought," study leader Carly Howett said in a statement Monday (Nov. 26). "The Saturn system and even the Jupiter system could turn out to be a veritable arcade of these characters." [Amazing Saturn Photos by Cassini]

Scientists suspect that the Pac-Man shapes on Mimas and Tethys are created when high-energy electrons slam into low latitudes on the forward-facing sides of the moons as they orbit Saturn.

This bombardment transforms the normally "fluffy" surface into hard-packed ice, NASA officials said. The effect means that the hard-packed ice does not heat up as fast during the day or cool down as fast at night, they added.

The surface of Tethys is also regularly bombarded by icy particles from geysers on Enceladus, another Saturn moon. The Pac-Man heat signature on Tethys, however, suggests that the surface changes from electron bombardment are occurring faster than the recoating effect from Enceladus' plumes, researchers said.

"Studies at infrared wavelengths give us a tremendous amount of information about the processes that shape planets and moons," Cassini spectrometer principal investigator Mike Flasar of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., explained. "A result like this underscores just how powerful these observations are."

Cassini's infrared spectrometer observations were obtained on Sept. 14, 2011. The research by Howett and her team is detailed in a recent edition of the science journal Icarus.

Howett and her colleagues found that the temperature on Tethys' surface varied depending on where in the Pac-Man they looked. The daytime temperature inside the Pac-Man shape's "mouth" was about 29 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 1.6 degrees Celsius) cooler than surrounding areas. The warmest temperature on Tethys, still a frigid minus 300 degrees F (minus 184 degrees C), was actually slightly colder than the warmest temperature on Mimas (about minus 290 degrees F or minus 178 degrees C).

Cassini's views of Tethys also confirmed that the Pac-Man heat map on the moon can also be spotted in visible-light images as a dark, lens-shaped area. The surface oddity was first sighted by NASA's Voyager spacecraft in 1980, but now finally explained.

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Saturn's Second 'Pac-Man' Moon Revealed in NASA Photos

There's something historic in this Martian dirt and rubble, unless there isn't.

Let's review what we know about NASA's Martian secret heard round the solar system last week:

An NPR reporter happened to be recording in the office of the lead scientist for the Curiosity rover as some data from the rover's on-board chemistry lab was coming in. When pressed by the reporter to interpret the data, NASA's John Grotzinger declined, commenting simply that the "data is going to be one for the history books."

What happened next was rampant speculation around the Web -- including by myself (with the help of some educated guesswork from one of the world's leading astrobiologists). Given the fact that Curiosity's sample analysis rig is designed to detect organic compounds, the most logical assumption is that Grotzinger may have been looking at preliminary indications that some organic material is present in martian soil.

A number of caveats were declared along the way, at least on the part of the reports nearest the source of the digital game of telephone that ensued. NASA refused to say exactly what the data said because it could be a fluke, or some sort of error. Even the expert whom I interviewed made clear that he had no idea what NASA might actually have found, and was only speculating based on the equipment that was involved.

That was pretty much the whole story: NASA might have found something big...or maybe not, so stay tuned.

But then the trolls came out. I've read plenty of e-mails, comments, tweets, and posts over the past few days blasting myself, my sources, the larger media, NASA, and even James Harden's beard for playing a role in what is admittedly the science equivalent of Page Six gossip.

All of us here are used to dealing with the trolls, but perhaps not NASA. This week, the space agency began backpedaling.

Mashable claims to have spoken with someone on the mission team who explained that what Grotzinger was trying to say was that the data collected from the entire Mars mission as a whole was what was "going to be one for the history books."

Uh-huh. OK. Here's how Curiosity itself put it in a tweet:

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NASA hedges on Curiosity's mystery Mars discovery

NASA's first orbital flight-model Orion crew capsule will have to be repaired before its planned 2014 debut after its aft bulkhead cracked during recent pressure testing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a NASA spokeswoman said Nov. 19.

The cracks were discovered during a proof pressure test the week of Nov. 5. Proof testing, in which a pressure vessel is subject to stresses greater than those it is expected to encounter during routine use, is one of the many preflight tests NASA is performing on Orion to certify the craft is safe for astronauts, agency spokeswoman Rachel Kraft said.

"The cracks are in three adjacent, radial ribs of this integrally machined, aluminum bulkhead," Kraft wrote in an email. "This hardware will be repaired and will not need to be remanufactured."

It took Orion prime contractor Lockheed Martin Space Systems of Denver about a year to make the vehicle that was damaged. Kraft did not say how long it would take to repair the capsule, built as part of a program intended to take astronauts to destinations beyond low Earth orbit. [Photos: NASA's Orion Spaceship Test Explained]

Cracking occurred when the pressure inside the Orion module reached about 149 kilopascals, or 21.6 pounds per square inch, Kraft said. To pass the proof test, the Orion pressure module has to withstand about 164 kilopascals, which is roughly 1.5 times the maximum stress the capsule is expected to encounter during missions, she said. Increasing the pressure inside the craft in an ambient environment of 1 atmosphere air pressure at sea level effectively simulates the conditions Orion would encounter in a vacuum.

William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, speculated that a beam affixed to the bulkhead's cracked ribs by a pair of bolts "may have been a little stiffer than some of the models portrayed."

To figure out what went wrong, "we'll actually cut out these cracks [from the bulkhead] and then we'll do a scan with an electron microscope," Gerstenmaier told members of the NASA Advisory Council's Human Exploration and Operations Committee. The group, which makes policy recommendations for NASA managers, met here Nov. 15.

A team of Lockheed Martin engineers will perform the post-test investigation. NASA is evaluating what effect, if any, the incident will have on Orion's scheduled late-2014 debut, designed to test essential systems on the vehicle including its heat shield and avionics, Kraft said.

During that flight, which is known as Exploration Flight Test-1, an uncrewed Orion will be launched to orbit and re-enter the atmosphere at about 32,000 kilometers per hour, or roughly 80 percent of the velocity the capsule would reach during a return from lunar orbit. Lockheed is running the flight test for NASA; the agency will pay the company for the flight data.

Lockheed Martin's Orion prime contract, awarded in 2006, is worth $6.23 billion. NASA added $375 million to that award in December so that Lockheed Martin could buy a Delta 4 Heavy rocket for the Exploration Flight Test 1 launch.

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NASA's deep-space Orion capsule cracks under pressure

WASHINGTON NASA's first orbital flight-model Orion crew capsule will have to be repaired before its planned 2014 debut after its aft bulkhead cracked during recent pressure testing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a NASA spokeswoman said Nov. 19.

The cracks were discovered during a proof pressure test the week of Nov. 5. Proof testing, in which a pressure vessel is subject to stresses greater than those it is expected to encounter during routine use, is one of the many preflight tests NASA is performing on Orion to certify the craft is safe for astronauts, agency spokeswoman Rachel Kraft said.

"The cracks are in three adjacent, radial ribs of this integrally machined, aluminum bulkhead," Kraft wrote in an email. "This hardware will be repaired and will not need to be remanufactured."

It took Orion prime contractor Lockheed Martin Space Systems of Denver about a year to make the vehicle that was damaged. Kraft did not say how long it would take to repair the capsule, built as part of a program intended to take astronauts to destinations beyond low Earth orbit. [Photos: NASA's Orion Spaceship Test Explained]

Cracking occurred when the pressure inside the Orion module reached about 149 kilopascals, or 21.6 pounds per square inch, Kraft said. To pass the proof test, the Orion pressure module has to withstand about 164 kilopascals, which is roughly 1.5 times the maximum stress the capsule is expected to encounter during missions, she said. Increasing the pressure inside the craft in an ambient environment of 1 atmosphere air pressure at sea level effectively simulates the conditions Orion would encounter in a vacuum.

William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, speculated that a beam affixed to the bulkhead's cracked ribs by a pair of bolts "may have been a little stiffer than some of the models portrayed."

To figure out what went wrong, "we'll actually cut out these cracks [from the bulkhead] and then we'll do a scan with an electron microscope," Gerstenmaier told members of the NASA Advisory Council's Human Exploration and Operations Committee. The group, which makes policy recommendations for NASA managers, met here Nov. 15.

A team of Lockheed Martin engineers will perform the post-test investigation. NASA is evaluating what effect, if any, the incident will have on Orion's scheduled late-2014 debut, designed to test essential systems on the vehicle including its heat shield and avionics, Kraft said.

During that flight, which is known as Exploration Flight Test-1, an uncrewed Orion will be launched to orbit and re-enter the atmosphere at about 32,000 kilometers per hour, or roughly 80 percent of the velocity the capsule would reach during a return from lunar orbit. Lockheed is running the flight test for NASA; the agency will pay the company for the flight data.

Lockheed Martin's Orion prime contract, awarded in 2006, is worth $6.23 billion. NASA added $375 million to that award in December so that Lockheed Martin could buy a Delta 4 Heavy rocket for the Exploration Flight Test 1 launch.

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NASA Discovers Cracks in Deep-Space Orion Capsule

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., November 27 - NASA is looking for new ideas on what to do with two space telescopes left over from a once-secret U.S. spy satellite program.

The U.S. space agency asked the scientific community on Tuesday for its input into possible missions for a pair of space telescopes donated last year to NASA by the National Reconnaissance Office, which operates the nation's spy satellites.

"NRO offered us their leftover hardware if we want it. They've been totally open in allowing us to study whether this hardware would be of advantage to NASA," said Paul Hertz, who oversees NASA's astrophysics programs.

Topping the list of existing proposals is to use one telescope for a mission to learn more about an anti-gravity force known as "dark energy," which is believed to be responsible for speeding up the universe's rate of expansion.

The phenomenon was discovered in the 1990s by two teams of researchers who shared the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics for their work.

The National Academy of Sciences has made that mission, known as the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope, its top choice for an astrophysics space mission for the next decade.

NASA estimates the WFIRST mission would cost $1.5 billion to $2 billion, but it cannot begin a major new astrophysics project until spending winds down on the over-budget and delayed James Webb Space Telescope, which is a successor to the Hubble Space Telescope and is scheduled for launch in 2018.

The NRO telescopes, which were built to peer down at Earth, each have a primary mirror that is 7.9 feet in diameter, much larger than the 4.3-foot (1.3-meter) observatory originally proposed for the WFIRST mission.

While a larger telescope may allow for more detailed observations, it could be more expensive to outfit with instruments and launch into space.

"There's a whole lot of ways that a larger telescope might benefit you, even if it doesn't save you money," Hertz said.

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NASA ponders new missions for spare spy telescopes

Nasa Target 2
Buy from Amazon UK Site redirect.viglink.com?key=083bca13018b6acb381a415148cefb98 out=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Eamazon%2Eco%2Euk%2Fexec%2Fobidos%2FASIN%2FB004OA76DG%2Fsport%5Ffab%2D21 Product Description Nasa Target 2 Disclaimer Fabriano Boutique is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon UK Site. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon, Inc. or its affiliates.From:Tracee DrewViews:0 0ratingsTime:00:58More inSports

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nasa - space station view
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Future of GODAR and IO - Jason Stember
This motion graphic was for a presentation booth. Created in After Effects. Photos are from the NASA image archive.From:Jason StemberViews:4 0ratingsTime:01:16More inFilm Animation

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NASA James Webb Space Telescope COCOA Primary Mirror Test
The Center of Curvature Optical Assembly, or COCOA is a piece of equipment that will measure the accuracy of NASA #39;s James Webb Space Telescope #39;s primary mirror, to ensure the mirrors are perfectly shaped and will work in the frosty environment of space. This behind-the-scenes NASA video explains the purpose of COCOA and how it is used in testing the mirrors. Credit: NASA #39;s Goddard Space Flight CenterFrom:markuglymarkViews:0 0ratingsTime:01:47More inScience Technology

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P-Noy #39;s Speech during the Conferment of the Quezon Service Cross on Jesse Robredo, 26 Nov 2012
Source: Video from RTVM Heroes Hall, Malacaang, | News Release below | Speech (Full text) | http://www.pcoo.gov.ph | Audio | http://www.pcoo.gov.ph | Photos | http://www.pcoo.gov.ph | http://www.pcoo.gov.ph | http://www.pcoo.gov.ph | President Aquino confers Quezon Service Cross on DILG Secretary Jesse Robredo (posthumous) President Benigno S. Aquino III conferred the Quezon Service Cross Award on the late Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo in ceremonies held in Malacaang on Monday. In his speech, President Aquino said the Quezon Service Cross Award was a fitting tribute to Robredo whom he said embodied the ideal traits of a good leader and public servant: honesty, dedication and humility. "Kinakatawan ni Jesse ang mga katangian ng isang tunay na lingkod-bayan: matapat, masigasig, at mapagkumbaba. Batid niyang bilang kawani ng gobyerno, ang una at ang huli niyang tungkulin ay ang pagsilbihan ang bandila, at iangat ang kanyang kapwa mdash;anumang pansariling sakripisyo ang kaakibat nito. Alam ito ng kanyang pamilya #39;t malalapit na kaibigan, alam ito ng kanyang mga kababayang Nagueo, at alam ito ng kanyang mga nakasalamuhang Pilipino ---nasa puso ni Jesse ang pagseserbisyo," the President said. "Sa araw pong ito, nakamit ni Jesse Robredo ang pinakamataas na parangal sa bansa, sa paglilingkod na nakasandig sa pagpapakumbaba. Kanyang pinatunayan na hindi laging naipapamalas ang kadakilaan sa lakas ng puwersa, sa katapangan, o sa kagitingan. Isang simpleng taong kumakalinga sa simpleng tao ...From:PCOO EDPViews:51 0ratingsTime:05:45More inNews Politics

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Hubblecast 59: Unweaving the rainbow [HD]
In this episode of the Hubblecast, we do away with Hubble #39;s stunning pictures of the cosmos, and focus on one of the telescope #39;s most important mdash; but least known mdash; functions. Like a digital camera, Hubble #39;s cameras produce colour images by sampling just a handful of colours and combining them together into one picture. The detail is extraordinary mdash; but while the colours are accurate enough for the human eye, they are not good enough for some kinds of scientific work, such as the study of distant galaxies and extrasolar planets. For much of their research, astronomers use Hubble #39;s spectrometers, devices that split up light into a rainbow of component colours, to reveal many of the hidden properties of the Universe. These observing methods may not produce attractive images, but they lie behind some of the most profound science that Hubble does. In this episode, presenter Joe Liske (aka Dr J) and Hubble astronomer Bob Fosbury give a introduction to spectroscopy using Hubble, how it works, and what it #39;s for. Release date: 12 November 2012 Credit: ESA/Hubble Visual design and editing: Martin Kornmesser Web and technical support: Mathias Andre and Raquel Yumi Shida Written by: Oli Usher Interviews: Oli Usher Filming: Herbert Zodet Presented by: Joe Liske (Dr J), with Bob Fosbury Narrator: Sara Mendes da Costa Images: NASA, ESA, Bob Fosbury, Martin Kornmesser Visualisations and animations: Luis Calada, Martin Kornmesser, Andr Roquette. Music: Steve Buick Directed by: Oli Usher ...From:TheMarsUndergroundViews:4 1ratingsTime:06:15More inScience Technology

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CLAIMS ASTROID NIBIRU ON COLLISION COURSE WITH EARTH plus WHATS REALLY GOING ON AT AREA 51
endtimes23.com This Week The Informer reports that there is a massive astroid heading our way nasa has dubbed nibiru ,there are conflicting claims that this huge monster could well collide with earth plus area 51 what really going on at one of the most secret bases in the United States and a breaking news sighting of the second sun in the middle east an amazing sight, timeline mon 26th nov 2012 http://www.youtube.com http://www.facebook.com twitter.com All this weeks news links can be found on my website endtimes23.com just click on the link and goto the top lefthand corner of the opening page and click on informer news links you will find all this weeks links at the top of the page under this weeks titled video .From:endtimes23Views:69 6ratingsTime:22:18More inPeople Blogs

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Hubblecast 58: Caught in the cosmic web [HD]
In this episode of the Hubblecast, Joe Liske (aka Dr J) shows how a team of astronomers has used Hubble and a battery of other telescopes to discover the secrets of massive galaxy cluster MACS J0717. They have found that an invisible filament of dark matter extends out of the cluster. This is our first direct glimpse of the shape of the scaffolding that gives the Universe its structure. Release date: 16 October 2012 Credit: ESA/Hubble Visual design and editing: Martin Kornmesser Web and technical support: Mathias Andre and Raquel Yumi Shida Written by: Oli Usher Presented by: Joe Liske (Dr J) Images: NASA, ESA, Harald Ebeling (University of Hawaii at Manoa), Jean-Paul Kneib (LAM) Visualisations: Luis Calada, Volker Springel (Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics) et al. Music: Toomas Erm Directed by: Oli Usher Cinematography: Peter Rixner (www.perix.de) Executive producer: Lars Lindberg ChristensenFrom:TheMarsUndergroundViews:0 0ratingsTime:06:51More inScience Technology

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Watch Solar Eclipse Over The Usa - May 20, 2012 - Nasa - Solar Eclipse May 20 2012
Watch full movie here : free-hot-movies.com 2012 Solar Eclipse Solar 20 Eclipse May solar eclipse 2012 may 5-20-12 how to see a solar eclipse Pleiades (Celestial Object) ring of fire solar eclipse how to view solar...From:SantoKuczmaViews:0 0ratingsTime:09:51More inFilm Animation

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Oh My! NASA Has Discovered Unbelievable Alien Creature In...
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Wadi Al Karak Waterfalls - Animation - Hiking in Jordan
This trail leads you through a spectacular wadi (valley) with waterfalls and lush vegetation. The trail is near the Dead Sea in Jordan. This animation is part of the "Hiking in Jordan Collection" by Grant Maassen. With 3D computer graphics generated using NASA #39;s World Wind mapping technology. Check out also our website with a complete overview of all trails: http://www.hiking-in-jordan.com Produced with Nasa World Wind Under: NASA Open Source Agreement Version 1.3 Music: Aulendia II Album: Aulendia By Terepin Licensed Under: CC BY-SA 3.0 Artemisa Album: Globe Trotter 2010 By GROK Licensed Under: CC BY-SA 3.0 Production: Poppieworks License: Video Distributed Under: CC BY-SA 3.0 NASA is not affiliated with this project. We use software released under NASA #39;s World Wind program for 3D trail rendering. See for more information the following video on our YouTube Channel: Wadi Al Karak Waterfalls - Video.From:hikinginjordanViews:0 0ratingsTime:01:53More inTravel Events

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Morpheus lander first free flight and failure in HD
Full video, unedited, streamed from nasa.gov. The video was produced by NASA, which is a federal organization. All published works by the government are in the public domain by law. I am posting this video in good faith as a member of the American public, and I attribute its origin to NASA. This video is not monetized. I did not post this video for financial gain. I do not earn any money from it. I posted it as a service to the general public. First post-crash explosion is at 1:56. Second is at 6:21.From:LatestMixTvViews:0 0ratingsTime:14:33More inScience Technology

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Last Updated: Sunday, November 25, 2012, 12:13 PM CAPE CANAVERAL --

NASA has delayed plans to send another cargo rocket to the International Space Station.

Engineers are still trying to figure out why an engine failed during October's SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch.

It didn't affect the mission.

However, both NASA and SpaceX want to figure out what happened.

They've delayed a scheduled January launch and pushed it back to March.

NASA managers said the ISS has enough supplies, so there's no need for a cargo mission just yet.

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NASA delays another ISS supply launch

NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and two planet-based explorers are tracking a massive dust storm, offering scientists an opportunity to study the planets weather like none theyve had before.

The regional dust storm was first spotted on Nov. 10 in the Red Planet's southern hemisphere. Though the storm is considered only regional, its big enough that it has lowered air pressure on either side of the planet and increased temperatures on the opposite pole by changing the atmospheres circulation.

Scientists are waiting to see whether it will develop into a dust haze that will engulf the entire planet.

For the first time since the Viking missions of the 1970s, we are studying a regional dust storm both from orbit and with a weather station on the surface, said Rich Zurek, chief Mars scientist at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory in LaCaada Flintridge in a news statement Wednesday.

The storm has come within 900 miles of Mars rover Opportunity, which landed on the planet in 2004 and depends on the sun for energy. On the other side of the planet is Curiosity, the 1-ton, nuclear-powered mobile laboratory that landed earlier this year.

If the dust storm expands, the two rovers combined with the Reconnaissance Orbiter should give scientists an unprecedented view.

One thing we want to learn is why do some Martian dust storms get to this size and stop growing, while others this size keep growing and go global, Zurek said.

Between Nov. 10 and Nov. 16, the region around the dust storm heated up by about 45 degrees Fahrenheit, scientists say. The dust is absorbing sunlight instead of reflecting it, lifting dust above the planet surface and pushing the storm wider.

If the dust engulfs Mars, it could reduce Opportunitys energy supply. Curiositys power would not be affected. Photos from its cameras could be hazy, however, not unlike its first images after it landed on the planet in the summer.

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NASA has 'unprecedented' view of Mars